Ali Abdullah Saleh, the overthrown Yemeni leader, has been killed by Houthi rebels near the country’s capital Sanaa, according to officials from his own political party.

His death comes amid an intensified conflict between the Iran-aligned armed group and pro-Saleh forces and it is expected to have major implications for the ongoing war in Yemen.

The Houthi and Saleh-linked forces were allies before Saleh called for a dialogue with their rivals, a military coalition of Arab states led by Saudi Arabia.

Here is a look at some key points in Yemen’s recent history.

Saleh killed

December 4, 2017: Ali Abdullah Saleh was killed by Houthi rebels near the capital Sanaa, party officials said, two days after he publicly broke off ties with the group and expressed his openness to talks with the Saudi Arabia-led coalition.

November 10, 2017: Aid agencies warn of mass starvation in Yemen, with more than 20 million people said to be in urgent need of food.

Saleh-Houthi rift

November 7, 2017: Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi is being held under “house arrest” in Saudi Arabia, reports indicated.

August 24, 2017: Saleh stages a mass rally in the capital, Sanaa, with thousands turning out in a major show of public support. The rally comes amid a public rift between the former president and the Houthi rebels who are in control of much of country.

Humanitarian crisis

July 1, 2017: At least 1,500 people have died and more than 246,000 others have been affected by a cholera outbreak in Yemen, according to the World Health Organisation.

April 26, 2017: The UN warned that 17 million Yemenis are in immediate danger of dying of starvation unless the world delivers immediate humanitarian assistance.

March 18, 2017: At least 42 Somalis were killed after a helicopter gunship attacked a boat near Yemen.

January 30, 2017: At least 10 Yemeni women and children were killed in a US military operation – the first under President Donald Trump – in the southern province of al-Bayda. The US military says it killed 14 members of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).

Houthis form government

November 29, 2016: Houthi rebels formed a new government in Sanaa, flouting the UN-brokered peace process.

October 29, 2016: Three weeks into a cholera outbreak in the war-torn country, the WHO said at least 1,410 cases were detected.

October 9, 2016: At least 140 people were killed and more than 500 wounded after several air raids on a funeral reception in the Yemeni capital Sanaa. The pro-Houthi Saba news agency said the raids were carried out by the Saudi-led coalition.

August 30, 2016: ISIL claims bombing at an army training camp in Yemen’s port city of Aden that killed at least 70 people. The UN announced that the death toll from the war in Yemen has risen to more than 10,000 people.

UN talks collapse

August 7, 2016: UN-sponsored talks to establish peace in Yemen collapsed and fighting resumed once more between Houthi rebels and pro-government forces.

July 29, 2016: The UN criticised an agreement signed between Saleh and Houthi rebels to form a political council to run the country.

April 24, 2016: UN-brokered peace talks in Kuwait hit a dead-end, with no breakthroughs. Talks were suspended and hostilities resumed.

Deadly attacks

March 19, 2016: The UN’s top human rights official said the organisation will be investigating possible “international crimes” committed by Saudi-led coalition forces in Yemen.

February 27, 2016: At least 40 civilians were killed in coalition air raids in a market northeast of Sanaa.

January 28, 2016: ISIL claimed responsibility for a deadly attack outside the presidential palace in the southern city of Aden that killed at least seven people.

December 16, 2015: During UN-sponsored peace talks in Geneva, Yemen’s rival sides agreed to a mass prisoner swap. No other major breakthroughs were achieved in the talks, but both sides agreed to return to the negotiating table.

Control changes hands

December 3, 2015: Al-Qaeda claimed to seize the Yemeni towns of Zinjibar and Jaar from pro-government forces, consolidating their grip on southern parts of the country.